The American tenor is performing at the ENO in Peter Sellars' production of The Indian Queen, which opened last night, before joining The Royal Opera as Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly.

‘I am so excited to be embraced by London and UK audiences’, Noah said to Suzy Klein on a recent episode of BBC Radio 3's In Tune, ‘and it’s such a blessing to be returning to Covent Garden to sing Madama Butterfly in an iconic house.’

Noah is performing the role of dashing cad Pinkerton – but playing a notorious opera baddie has a downside:

‘I would say I’ve been booed 21 times as Pinkerton. Each time, it’s not a great feeling, but I know if I’ve been booed I’ve done my job’, he says. ‘What saves me is that it’s one of Puccini’s best-written roles for the tenor voice. It’s very lyrical and very high, and my voice sits perfectly in that range. Pinkerton is also an American character so I feel very at home in playing the part.’

Watch a Noah perform 'L’Ultima canzone' by Tosti on In Tune:

Later this year, Noah will be performing his UK solo tour So In Love, which opens in Leeds on 19 April.

‘This tour traces my musical steps and history, combining my favourites of opera with musical theatre’, he says. ‘I think we should always cross genres, as all art is wonderful’.

In addition to performing a selection of songs, Noah also discussed returning to his home town of Harlem, singing opera in the supermarket and why he loves Broadway music.

The forthcoming tour in June marks the first time The Royal Ballet has performed in New York for more than a decade, and some 37 years since the last performance in Chicago.

The Winter's Tale, which was critically acclaimed on its premiere in 2014, is based on Shakespeare’s dark drama of love and loss. It will be shown in more than 400 cinemas across the US from 17 February 2015. Read audience reactions to the opening night and to the live cinema relay.

Watch an interview with Christopher on the challenges and process of creating The Winter's Tale:

The event also included an introduction from Kevin and a Q&A session with Christopher, Lauren and Edward.

‘Last Season was our biggest year so far, with cinema audiences doubling to more than 700,000 attending around the world,’ he said. ‘It’s a great way for people to get to see our work and this Season we’ll be screening ballet into more than 400 cinemas across the US.’

]]>http://www.roh.org.uk/news/royal-ballet-productions-including-the-winters-tale-screened-in-cinemas-across-the-us/feed0Umberto Giordano’s Andrea Chénier to be screened live in cinemas across the world on 29 January 2015http://www.roh.org.uk/news/umberto-giordanos-andrea-chenier-to-be-screened-live-in-cinemas-across-the-world-on-29-january-2015
http://www.roh.org.uk/news/umberto-giordanos-andrea-chenier-to-be-screened-live-in-cinemas-across-the-world-on-29-january-2015#commentsThu, 22 Jan 2015 15:30:10 +0000Lottie Butlerhttp://www.roh.org.uk/?p=36581

Poet Andrea Chénier and former aristocrat Maddalena di Coigny fall in love, much to the envy of Carlo Gérard – a servant in Maddalena’s home. However, when Gérard becomes a Revolutionary official, his jealousy threatens not only their happiness, but their lives.

31 December at 8pm and 1 January at 8am: The Royal Ballet’s Giselle, with Natalia Osipova as Giselle and Carlos Acosta as Albrecht

29 December at 7.30pm (Sky Arts 1), 1 January at 8pm, 2 January at 8am, and 3 January at 8.30am (Sky Arts 1): The Royal Ballet’s Swan Lake, with Zenaida Yanowsky as Odette and Nehemiah Kish as Prince Siegfried

'Kenneth was an enormous film fan so would have been thrilled this was happening,' said the choreographer's wife, Deborah MacMillan.

'The cinema relays mean such a lot to us and it is amazing to see how they have grown,' said Director of The Royal Ballet Kevin O'Hare. 'It is a particular pleasure opening with Manon as it is the 40th anniversary of Kenneth MacMillan's production, and it is a production that has really shaped The Royal Ballet.'

The new Season will feature 11 Royal Opera House productions broadcast to more than 1,400 cinemas in 30 countries worldwide.

Following Manon, the next live relay of the Season will see Verdi’s early tragic opera I due Foscari, simulcast on 27 October. The Royal Opera production stars Plácido Domingo and is conducted by Music Director of The Royal Opera Antonio Pappano.

Donizetti's political drama, which is based on Friedrich von Schiller's 1800 play Maria Stuart, depicts a fictitious meeting between Elizabeth I and Mary, Queen of Scots. Donizetti adds a romantic dimension by having Leicester fall in love with Maria. The score contains some of the composer's most moving music and provides a vocal showcase for the two lead singers. Famous pairings for the regal cousins include Joan Sutherland and Huguette Tourangeau, both of whom starred in the first production of Maria Stuarda at Covent Garden in 1977. Find out more in our Opera Essentials series.

It is a co-production with Polish National Opera, Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris, and Gran Teatre del Liceu, Barcelona. It is staged with generous philanthropic support from Lord and Lady Laidlaw, Susan and John Singer and Michael Hartnall.

The opera, a rich combination of tragic opera and bawdy comedy, features three of Strauss’s greatest soprano roles. Karita Mattila, who performed the role of Marie in Wozzeck earlier this Season, takes the role of the passionate and lyrical Ariadne; Jane Archibald performs Zerbinetta, one of the hardest roles in the coloratura repertory; and Ruxandra Donose is the intense and enthusiastic Composer. Roberto Saccà sings the role of Bacchus.

Ariadne auf Naxos is based on Molière's play Le Bourgeois gentilhomme. When a rich patron insists that high-brow opera and low-brow comedy are staged at the same time, true love and cheerful promiscuity collide. A playful exploration of two different worlds, the opera examines the role of art in society, and is very funny. Find out more in our Opera Essentials series.

Other BBC Radio 3 relays this Season include Maria Stuarda, which will be broadcast live on 14 July at 7.15pm.

The work features two challenging, polyphonic vocal roles performed by Leigh Melrose and Kristin Chávez. They appear alongside the London Sinfonietta conducted by Andrew Gourlay and an ambitious electronic sound design, which incorporates electronically-treated recordings from a full-scale orchestra.

‘We haven’t heard much of Luca’s music performed in London, but I’ve worked with him in Italy,’ he says.‘Written on Skin is a good reference for the beauty and harrowing intensity of Luca’s music’. Watch Antonio discuss Quartett.